South Sudan Travel Notice: Transition of Pass Permits to Visas

This is a good move in the issuance of visas as opposed to pass permits. Since visas are stuck to passports they show to the world out there how organized our immigration system is. Bravo the Ministry of Interior. However, I have one concern, currently probably every non-South Sudanese who works here (from cleaning to Director levels) only have pass permits but NOT work permits. Anyone granted from now on, to enter South Sudan with a visa should not be allowed to do work even selling chapati, water, washing, etc. In the developed world ( as well as our neighbors), for one to even be a cleaner one must have a work permit. Gone are the days when South Sudan lost millions of dollars which could have been generated from work permits.

The Immigration system should also be computerized or organized in any kind that shows modernity. The way visa fees are collected should be totally changed. I remember in Juba airport exit visas are being collected without documentation. We need to change. The way the embassy is doing in Kenya is the best. The same principle can be applied in Juba and every embassy abroad where fees are paid to the bank for proper management and accountability. Collections from the borders should also have a proper system where records are well kept and collections well accounted for.

Another issue is exit visas. No one should be charged for leaving his own home. We have a lot of people coming in here and those policies of the North to impose exit visas those years should stop. We are a different country now. We also need our immigration officials to be well trained and be able to speak English for easy communication with any visitor, be able to read and write,...etc. It embarrasses me when I see most of them at the borders struggle to read and write. We need the right people in these positions.

Good luck in all the transformation of the immigration system.

In regard to the above article, this is a well done job from South Sudan Embassy in Kenya and all of our embassies should do the same. All of the requirements for the visa holders are in place but they have forgotten to add one more requirement, which the traveling tickets or the itinerary. The traveler most have a two way ticket instead of one way if their visitation is less than six months or take the same flight back to where they came from.

All of the perfect ideas will come gradually and lets not rush things just to avoid mistakes. We are still a new country and we are not trying to compete with anyone.

GOD BLESS SOUTH SUDAN

Dear Minister of Interior,
I am writing to inform you that people who are at our national or international borders should be people who are well versed with ethnic communities or tribes. For example, Azande people look like people in Kenya or Uganda or in fact are Bantu type of people. Most often I have been mishandled for appearing like a foreigner several times at Malakal airport and Juba airport respectively.

Even if it is a foreigner in our country, we should handle them as though they are human beings and more specially passing a good image of our country to the outside world as being civilised people.

Our days of fighting in the bush has gone and we should leave behind all sorts of wild behaviours and begin acting like a civilised nation.

The border is very sensitive and needs people who are very sensitive as well